A pastor once said we sometimes see the church as a cruise ship.
People come to church with the vacation expectations:
Is the music great in the dining hall?
Are the captain and crew members friendly?
Am I satisfied with how I am being served?
Does the cruise run on schedule?
Are my family members enjoying this trip?
Will we join this cruise line again?
It is normal to consider the spiritual needs of ourselves and our family. Unfortunately, sometimes, we gradually forget the reason why we are at church every Sunday morning. We gradually bring with us the vacation expectations.
Is that what Jesus has in mind?
The Church is for the world
In Matthew 15:13-16, Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth,…. You are the light of the world.”
Jesus reminds His followers why we are here: not only for ourselves, but for the world. The Church is here on earth to make a difference.
The Church is the salt of the earth: to make the tasteless world tasteful
Our world is becoming tasteless. The once exciting things, like friendship, career, relationship and family, have lost their original values and meanings. Becoming tasteless is not because they become less attractive, but because nature is distorted and the meaning is gone.
The Church is here for the earth to bring back the original taste – value and meaning. We carry the taste of Christ: His value, His attitude, and His image, inside of us as our identity. Jesus calls us to bring this taste back to the earth through our lifestyles, our conversations, and our relationships.
The Church is the light of the world – to bring light into the darkness
“A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5;14-16)
The Church is here to shine her light into the darkness, just like the light of a city gives hope to the exhausted travellers at night. The Church brings hope to people travelling in darkness, no matter what crisis they are facing in life: disease, addiction or other unfavourable circumstances.
Through our good works among the broken-hearted, the poor, the marginalized and those in needs, the Church is to show the world who God is. We are here to let the world to taste the goodness of God through our actions.
A pastor once said, “The Church is the battleship of God.” The Church is here not just for entertainment, but on God’s mission for the world. The Church is here to be salt and light of the world.
“The Church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time ……” —C.S. Lewis, from “Mere Christianity”
We are ready. How about you?
